Voice of America, 99-10-27

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From: The Voice of America <gopher://gopher.voa.gov>

CONTENTS

[01] U-N BOSNIA (L ONLY) BY BRECK ARDERY (NEW YORK)

[02] UNICEF / TURKEY (L-ONLY) BY LISA SCHLEIN (GENEVA)

[03] CLINTON / EU / WTO(L ONLY) BY DEBORAH TATE (WHITE HOUSE)

[04] GERMANY / TURKEY (L ONLY) BY JONATHAN BRAUDE (BERLIN)

[05] IRAN / FRANCE VISIT (L ONLY) BY JULIAN NUNDY (PARIS)

[06] BRITAIN / LORDS (S-O) BY LAURIE KASSMAN (LONDON)

[07] MCCAFFREY / BRUSSELS (L ONLY) BY RON PEMSTEIN (BRUSSELS)

[08] NY ECON WRAP (S&L) BY ELAINE JOHANSON (NEW YORK)

[09] WEDNESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

[10] RUSSIA / BELARUS TREATY (L-ONLY) BY PETER HEINLEIN (MOSCOW)

[11] RUSSIA / CHECHNYA (L) BY EVE CONANT (MOSCOW)

[01] U-N BOSNIA (L ONLY) BY BRECK ARDERY (NEW YORK)

INTRO: The Coordinator of United Nations operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Jacques Klein, said today (Wednesday) that while the general quality of law enforcement there has greatly improved, the problem of terrorism remains. At the United Nations, V-O-A Correspondent Breck Ardery reports.

TEXT: Jacques Klein told reporters the U-N Mission in Bosnia is now focusing on its core mandate of improving the quality of police and the judicial system. He said that the overall level of security in Bosnia has improved greatly in terms of the way police respond to routine crime, but terrorism is still a major problem. Mr. Klein recalled last week's car bombing of Bosnian- Serb journalist Zeljko Kopanja, in which Mr. Kopanja was critically injured.

[02] UNICEF / TURKEY (L-ONLY) BY LISA SCHLEIN (GENEVA)

INTRO: UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund, along with the Turkish government, has set up a number of special centers for children to help the young victims of Turkey's earthquake settle back into a normal life. Lisa Schlein in Geneva reports the centers are providing an estimated 30-thousand children with educational, recreational and health services.

TEXT: The idea behind these so-called "child friendly" spaces is to meet the needs of children caught in emergency situations. The concept was first created for Kosovar refugees in Albania. In Turkey, these centers are seen as a temporary measure until something more permanent can be set up. Dozens of centers are functioning in the tent cities, which sprouted in the aftermath of Turkey's devastating earthquake. Margherita Amodeo of UNICEF says many of the tents provide recreational activities for children. Others offer health and hygiene facilities

[03] CLINTON / EU / WTO(L ONLY) BY DEBORAH TATE (WHITE HOUSE)

INTRO: The President of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, met with President Clinton at the White House Wednesday, and the two leaders agreed that the United States and the European Union would work together for a successful World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle, Washington next month. But the White House meeting did not resolve two thorny trade issues that Mr. Clinton fears could undermine the WTO talks. Correspondent Deborah Tate reports. Text: The most difficult issue between the United States and the European Union is hormone-treated beef imports, and there was little progress made on the matter during the hour-long meeting between Mr. Clinton and Mr. Prodi. The decade-old European ban on such imports led the United States earlier this year to impose 117 million dollars in punitive duties on a range of goods from European countries. Mr. Prodi emerged from the White House to tell reporters that EU nations - which have endured several recent food scares, from mad cow disease linked to British beef and illnesses resulting from tainted Coca-Cola - would not lift the ban until they are given ironclad assurances that hormone-treated beef is safe.

[04] GERMANY / TURKEY (L ONLY) BY JONATHAN BRAUDE (BERLIN)

INTRO: Germany will send one modern battle tank to Turkey's army for testing. But as Jonathan Braude reports from Berlin, the proposed sale of one-thousand of the German tanks will depend on an improvement in Turkey's human rights record.

TEXT: The decision to permit the delivery of one tank to Turkey is a compromise -- worked out after days of angry debate between the two parties in Germany's coalition government. The smaller coalition party, the Greens, opposes the sale of arms to countries with poor human rights records. But Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and his Social Democrats want Germany to be considered for Turkey's eight-billion-dollar purchase of about one-thousand tanks. About six- thousand German jobs are at stake. Under the compromise, the Greens agreed to accept the delivery of one German tank to Turkey. In return, the Social Democrats agreed to review Germany's human rights criteria for weapons sales. The compromise gives the Turkish military one year to test the German tank along with tanks from France, Italy, Ukraine, and the United States. By the time Turkey decides which of the tanks to buy, Germany could have tighter human rights criteria for weapons sales -- in line with the government's election promise of what it calls a more ethical arms trade policy. If Turkey decides to buy the German tank, it would have to show it has improved its human rights record. On a related question, Germany's federal security committee blocked the sale to Turkey of German technology for a tank-mounted howitzer gun. Turkish foreign minister Ismail Cem refused to comment on the tank decision after discussions with Germany's foreign minister and deputy chancellor, Joschka Fischer. Mr. Fischer is a member of the Green party. But the pacifist wing of Mr. Fishcher's party is upset with the compromise, fearing delivery of even one tank could be the first step toward a full-scale sell-out of the ethical arms policy. Greens activists asked how Germany could justify going go war over human rights in Kosovo at the same time it is seeking to sell tanks to Turkey, a country they say is oppressing its Kurdish minority. For the moment, the Greens will not be leaving the government. And the assessment of Turkey's human rights record has been put off for at least one year -- until Germany completes the review of its weapons sales policies. (Signed) NEB/JB/JWH/LTD/KL 27-Oct-1999 08:34 AM EDT (27-Oct-1999 1234 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[05] IRAN / FRANCE VISIT (L ONLY) BY JULIAN NUNDY (PARIS)

INTRO: Iran's President Mohammad Khatami is in Paris for the first visit by an Iranian head of state to France since the Islamic Revolution 20-years ago. Julian Nundy in Paris reports French police rounded up a number of Iranian dissidents to head off protests.

TEXT: French police briefly detained 36 "Mujahideen" members of the Iranian dissident National Resistance Council. But hundreds of others managed to demonstrate in central Paris. Police said two-thousand protestors demonstrated, but organizers put the figure five-times higher. The protest coincided with the arrival of President Mohammed Khatami on a rare visit to the West. But, when the Iranian president, who has shown some signs of wanting to open up his country to the outside world, landed in Paris, the schedule of his three-day visit was abruptly changed. He had been planning to deliver a speech Thursday at the General Assembly of UNESCO -- the United Nations, Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization -- but UNESCO said this had been canceled. UNESCO did not explain the cancellation of Mr. Khatami's only public appearance, but French official sources said it was for security reasons. Iranian dissidents argue that executions, torture, and other human rights abuses have continued under President Khatami. French President Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister Lionel Jospin received Mr. Khatami immediately after his arrival. French officials said they plan to raise the human rights issue in their talks. They said France will stress its concern about the fate of 13-Iranian Jews who were arrested earlier this year, officially on suspicion of spying for Israel. Mr. Khatami's visit to France was originally planned for April. It was postponed after Iran objected to plans for an official dinner in the president's honor because wine would have been served. France refused to change its usual hospitality rules to meet the Islamic ban on alcohol. To get around the problem this time, the French foreign ministry has no plans for a dinner, but only a short reception at which what it calls, refreshments, will be offered. (SIGNED) NEB/JWN/JWH/LTD/RAE 27-Oct-1999 10:16 AM EDT (27-Oct-1999 1416 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[06] BRITAIN / LORDS (S-O) BY LAURIE KASSMAN (LONDON)

INTRO: Members of Britain's House of Lords have voted to abolish the historic right of hereditary peers to sit, and vote, in Parliament's second chamber. Correspondent Laurie Kassman reports from London the House of Commons is expected to approve the bill, which passed through the House of Lords, by a vote of 221-to-81.

TEXT: The vote was overwhelming in favor of ending more than 600-years of British tradition. But it did not come easily. There were hours of sometimes-bitter debate and an outburst by the son of a hereditary peer who accused the House of Lords of outright treason. After the vote, the leader of the House of Lords said simply -- it is time to say thank you and goodbye. More than half the House of Lords' 12-hundred-13 members have inherited their seats. Prime Minister Tony Blair has promised to modernize the system and end what he considers the undemocratic right of hereditary nobles who are not elected to sit, and vote, in the House of Lords. In the first phase of reform, 92-hereditary peers will be selected by secret ballot to remain until a revamped House of Lords is established. (SIGNED) NEB/LMK/GE/LTD/RAE 27-Oct-1999 07:18 AM EDT (27-Oct-1999 1118 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[07] MCCAFFREY / BRUSSELS (L ONLY) BY RON PEMSTEIN (BRUSSELS)

INTRO: The U-S government's top anti-drug official has met with European Commission officials to discuss the growing cocaine problem in Europe. V-O-A Correspondent Ron Pemstein reports from Brussels that while drug seizures are up, so is the supply of illegal drugs.

TEXT: Information provided by U-S officials indicates 120 to 180 tons of cocaine left South America for Europe during the last year. Seizures of the drug in the first six months of this year have already doubled all the cocaine seized last year. That is the good news. The bad news is that there are still 80 to 130 tons of cocaine available for consumption in Europe. The head of the White House's anti-drug effort, Barry McCaffrey, accompanied by the ambassadors to Belgium from Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru met with European Commission officials to encourage them to cut coca production by continuing to fund alternative development projects.

[08] NY ECON WRAP (S&L) BY ELAINE JOHANSON (NEW YORK)

INTRO: Stock prices in the United States were mostly up today (Wednesday). Until a late-day rush of buying, investors moved cautiously in advance of key data coming out (Thursday) on whether inflationary pressures still exist in the U-S economy. V-O-A correspondent Elaine Johanson reports from New York:

TEXT: The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 92 points, less than one percent, closing at 10-thousand- 394. The Standard and Poor's 500 index rose 14 points to 12-hundred-96. But the Nasdaq index finished on the minus side for a loss of three-tenths of one percent. Many Wall Street watchers expect the stock market's volatility to continue. Investment strategist Alan Bond believes the market actually is five to 10 percent undervalued. But he says uncertainty will likely keep many investors from taking advantage of buying opportunities:

[09] WEDNESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

INTRO: A new president in Argentina and the implications from a defeat for the Peronists is a popular topics in Wednesday's editorial pages. The situation in East Timor, as the U-N tries to rebuild an independent nation there is also featured in many columns. There are also editorials about North Korea; finding justice in the U-S military shooting in South Korea during the Korean war; the new Palestinian access road between Gaza and the West Bank; and mourning the loss of golfer Payne Stewart. Now, here is __________ with a closer look and some excerpts in today's Editorial Digest.

TEXT: Long-time Argentine president Carlos Menem was replaced by Fernando de la Rua, the Mayor of Buenos Aires in last Sunday's presidential election. "The Los Angeles Times" praises what it describes as the "Orderly Transition in Argentina."

VOICE: At a time when Latin American politics are resurrecting the caudillo, the strongman, in a handful of countries, the orderly change of power in Argentina is refreshing. About 24- million Argentines went to the polls on Sunday .sending a message to the rest of the continent that full-fledged democracy had returned to Latin America, at least in Argentina, a pivotal nation and the birthplace of Peronism, the militaristic politics that dominated Latin America for decades.

TEXT: On the same philosophical path, "The Washington Post" adds:

VOICE: Sunday's election in Argentina was not big news, which says a lot for the country's remarkable development. Until 1983 Argentina suffered under brutal military rule, and for several years thereafter a fragile democracy lived in the shadow of a restive army. . Now . Argentina has elected Fernando de la Rua, a low- key lawyer, and power is set to change hands amid remarkable tranquility.

TEXT: On the other side of the world, the U-N task of creating a new, and tiny independent nation out of the ashes of East Timor, draws the attention of today's "Boston Globe".

VOICE: There has never been anything quite like the reconstruction task the United Nations has accepted in the liberated, but devastated territory of East Timor. .. Daunting as the task of nation-building will be, it is fitting that the responsibility falls on the United Nations. Since Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975 and annexed it the following year, the United Nations has properly refused to recognize Indonesian claims to sovereignty over the Timorese.

TEXT: On New York's Long Island, "Newsday" sums up its feelings in this headline: "U-N's East Timor Experiment costly, Worthwhile:" adding:

VOICE: .to succeed, it will need adequate funding. The early estimates are one-billion- dollars-a-year for at least three-years. And this is where the United States -- which owes the United Nations more than one-point-five- billion dollars in back dues, making it the largest deadbeat in the world body -- has an obligation to put its money where its good intentions have been.

TEXT: Far to the North, on the Korean peninsula, more comment is generated on how to deal with the regime in Pyongyang, from today's "New York Times". The paper hails the recent policy review on North Korea, conducted by former Secretary of Defense William Perry, and says its recommendations should be tried.

VOICE: The review, which was recently made public, calls for steps to engage Pyongyang diplomatically and economically, as well as to prepare for possible confrontation and conflict. That is the right mix, although there are no guarantees the North will respond appropriately. Still, the costs of any future military clash on the Korean Peninsula would be so heavy that it would be foolish not to give diplomacy every realistic chance to succeed.

TEXT: In the South, attention continues on finding the truth about an alleged massacre of unarmed South Korean civilians by U-S Army troops during the Korean war. "The Los Angeles Times" ponders the question of offering immunity to ex-soldiers in return for testimony.

VOICE: The argument against immunity is that some who might be guilty of what today would indisputably be seen and prosecuted as war crimes would escape punishment. The argument for immunity is the problem of relying on half- century-old memories to build a prosecutable case, and whether federal law as it existed in 1950 would even permit prosecution. It is a delicate issue involving, among other things, whether U-S authorities are prepared to go after their own citizens implicated in wartime atrocities with the same vigor that they go after others.

TEXT: "The Washington Times" takes up the case of Abdul Gani Lone, who has repeatedly been imprisoned by Indian authorities for supporting Kashmiri independence. Just having been in the United States for medical treatment, the U-S government says he will not be allowed back for treatment of a serious heart condition, because he discussed the Kashmiri independence issue while here. "The Times" is upset at the prospect of his arrest when back in India.

VOICE: Mr. Lone was unable to get his visa renewed to complete his medical treatment in the United States. .India, by imprisoning this man, would send a message to the international community about a lack of respect for human rights and about India's preferred method of conflict resolution. Mr. Lone called India a "vast prison." Its government now has an opportunity to prove him wrong.

TEXT: There is praise for the newly-opened Israeli road link for Palestinians to travel between the West Bank and Gaza from "The Houston Chronicle".

VOICE: In the fragile and long-suffering Middle East peace process, another milestone has been reached. The importance of Monday's opening of a safe-passage corridor linking the Gaza Strip and the West Bank cannot be overstated. It now is up to . both sides to ensure that the passage does not become the security threat to Israel that had so long been feared.

TEXT: Domestically, there is more editorial comment about fashion photographer, Ron Harris, who has begun offering the eggs of several fashion models for sale on the Internet to prospective parents. "The Omaha World Herald" in Nebraska calls it an unhealthy idea. In Oklahoma, "The Tulsa World" describes it as "Infertility's worst nightmare." And "The San Francisco Chronicle" sums up:

VOICE: Eugenics is a menacing game, and it relegates the creation of a family to a scientific experiment rather than the chaotic mix of emotion, love, receptivity, and nurturing that it is. Pity the poor child who fails to meet the comeliness expectations of parents who would rely on an offer like [that of Mr.] Harris'. The brave new world is here, with sperm banks, egg donors, and ads offering 50- thousand dollars for eggs from an athletic student from a top college. Infertile couples must make weighty moral and ethical decisions when they seek an egg or sperm donor.

TEXT: Finally, sorrowful editorials in many papers at the bizarre death of champion U-S golfer Payne Stewart, killed in a private jet aircraft crash on Monday in South Dakota. One of them comes from The Augusta [Georgia] Chronicle in a city that annually hosts the Masters Golf championship.

VOICE: To casual golf viewers, Mr. Stewart was the man in the colorful garb: kickers and a tam o'shanter hat. But to his fellow golfers, Mr. Stewart was a much-admired, much-liked but very fierce competitor. He played with grit and won with grace, said one admirer. . he was ranked eighth in the world .[at] his death. He credited his success to his faith in God. Mr. Stewart's passion for the game and his popularity with fans meant his death devastated his peers. "One of the most terrible tragedies of modern-day golf," commented legend Arnold Palmer.

TEXT: On that sad note, we conclude this sampling of editorial comment from Wednesday's daily papers.
NEB/ANG/RAE 27-Oct-1999 11:45 AM EDT (27-Oct-1999 1545 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[10] RUSSIA / BELARUS TREATY (L-ONLY) BY PETER HEINLEIN (MOSCOW)

INTRO: The president of Belarus has called for Russia to approve quickly a planned merger between the two countries. Moscow Correspondent Peter Heinlein reports Russian lawmakers responded warmly to the proposal.

TEXT: In a fiery speech to Russia's lower house, the Duma, Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko accused pro-western interests of trying to subvert the public demand for a merger between Moscow and Minsk.

[11] RUSSIA / CHECHNYA (L) BY EVE CONANT (MOSCOW)

INTRO: Russian troops are pounding Chechnya's capital with rockets in the heaviest attack on the city since federal troops invaded the breakaway republic last month. Chechen officials say initial reports show several dozen civilians were killed and more than 100 injured in the attacks on Grozny. Moscow correspondent Eve Conant reports Russian President Boris Yeltsin says Moscow is determined to press ahead with the campaign.

TEXT: News reports say large plumes of smoke could be seen over Grozny as Russian jets roared overhead. Houses in the eastern part of the city suffered damage, and civilians were reported to be hiding in basements and staying indoors. Others are said to be trying to flee, but the main route out of Chechnya has been blocked.

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